City officials are attempting to cultivate new incentives for applicants in the Bergamot area, focusing on the building of not just housing, but palatable open spaces for potential residents.
At the July 15 meeting of the city’s Architectural Review Board (ARB), the board held a lengthy discussion on the Bergamot Area Plan which was first adopted in September 2013. Using the 140 acres of land surrounding the Metro 26th Street/Bergamot Expo Line station, the Bergamot plan was intended to guide compact, mixed-use development linked to the transit site.
Over a decade later, officials stated that the plan has not resulted in the intended transformation of Bergamot, with just four projects being approved thus far, all predating building standards laid out by the plan. City Planning Manager Jing Yeo told City Council during a June 11 study session that one of the "key reasons" developers have been shy is due to "confusing" standards that have been "difficult to implement."
"The idea was to build this sort of transit village, a new neighborhood," Yeo said. "Suffice to say, looking over 10 years later, almost nothing has happened that is governed by the plan," Yeo said.
To remedy this, boards like the ARB and Planning Commission have been working to construct more attractive standards for building, including a new incentive for larger sites. Given Council’s interest in prioritizing open spaces and landscaping, ARB introduced a potential incentive for sites larger than one acre, which would create pathways for pedestrian and resident access through the project site and "create a walkable residential neighborhood."
Though nothing is official yet, ARB is seeking feedback on the incentive, part of the Bergamot Area Plan’s goal of simplifying "overall standards" and providing "clearer user-friendly regulations with greater incentives to build housing."
In a staff report on the subject, the ARB noted that instead of two buildings being constructed on separate smaller parcels, putting two buildings within one larger parcel would potentially bypass an extra fire lane consideration at sites, giving "more meaningful open space" to residents.
Council direction to the ARB stated that open space should be required on the ground floor of any future project, as the space "creates openness at the ground level in between buildings and properties." Council also noted that ground floor open space should be designed adjacent to a sidewalk to "contribute to a walkable neighborhood for residents."
Another arm of the Bergamot discussion hinged on the creation of objective standards for new residential development that considers "the unique aspects" of high-rise design within the area’s context. Building projects beginning at 90 feet of height, the Council recommended, should factor in open spaces as well as "human-scale, pedestrian-oriented design." Council and other boards previously reviewed high-rise standards in places like San Diego, San Jose and New York City in crafting recommendations.
Discussions around high-rise standards come into play with potential development projects under California’s Density Bonus Law, which Yeo noted the city has been "mindful" of in the Bergamot process.
"We really believe that we have to have a statement of the city’s values with respect to these buildings and our expectations … but we also want to make sure that we have standards that are reasonable and feasible and will actually be used," Yeo said.
thomas@smdp.com
